Polyclonal Mycobacterium Avium Infections in Patients with AIDS: Variations in Antimicrobial Susceptibilities of Different Strains of M. Avium Isolated from the Same Patient.

Broth microdilution MICs were determined for pairs of strains isolated from five AIDS patients with polyclonal Mycobacterium avium infection. Four (80%) of the five patients were infected simultaneously with strains having different antimicrobial susceptibility patterns. These findings have implications for the interpretation of susceptibility data in M. avium prophylaxis and treatment trials

Multi-contrast photoacoustic microscopy

We developed multi-contrast photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) for in vivo anatomical, functional, metabolic, and molecular imaging. This technical innovation enables comprehensive understanding of the tumor microenvironment. With multi-contrast PAM, we longitudinally determined tumor vascular anatomy, blood flow, oxygen saturation of hemoglobin, and oxygen extraction fraction

Weight-based antibiotic dosing in a real-world European study of complicated skin and soft-tissue infections due to methicillin-resistant <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i>

AbstractWe aimed to characterize real-world dosing of weight-based intravenous (IV) antibiotic therapy in patients hospitalized for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) complicated skin and soft-tissue infections (cSSTIs). This was a subgroup analysis of a retrospective chart review that captured data from 12 European countries. The study included patients ≥18 years old, hospitalized with an MRSA cSSTI between 1 July 2010 and 30 June 2011 and discharged alive by 31 July 2011. Patients treated with IV vancomycin, teicoplanin or daptomycin at any stage during hospitalization were included in this analysis. Analyses were conducted at the regimen level (dosing in mg/kg or in mg, frequency, and total daily dose (TDD)), with potentially multiple regimens per patient, and the patient level, categorizing patients into low, standard (labelled) and high dosing groups according to their initial MRSA-targeted regimen. Among the 1502 patients in the parent study, 998 patients contributed a total of 1050 daptomycin, teicoplanin or vancomycin regimens. Across all regimens, the mean initial TDDs were 6.3 ± 1.9 mg/kg for daptomycin, 10.5 ± 4.9 mg/kg for teicoplanin and 28.5 ± 11.5 mg/kg for vancomycin. A total of 789 patients received first-line therapy with one of the above antibiotics. The majority of patients receiving first-line teicoplanin and daptomycin (96% and 80%, respectively) received higher than labelled cSSTI doses, whereas vancomycin doses were lower than labelled doses in >40% of patients. These real-world data reveal significant deviation from labelled antibiotic dosing in 12 European countries and the potential for suboptimal outcomes in patients with MRSA cSSTIs

The subjective well-being of workfare participants: insights from a day reconstruction survey

In this paper, we shed more light on the subjective well-being of workfare participants and compare it to the well-being of unemployed and employed workers. We use data from a self-conducted survey among participants in workfare schemes in Germany. We examine two subdimensions of subjective well-being – life satisfaction and emotional well-being – separately to obtain a more comprehensive view of the subjective impact of workfare jobs. Our results show that the life satisfaction of workfare participants is between that of employed and unemployed people. More surprisingly, perhaps, we find that their emotional well-being is the highest of these three groups

Multi-contrast photoacoustic microscopy

We developed multi-contrast photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) for in vivo anatomical, functional, metabolic, and molecular imaging. This technical innovation enables comprehensive understanding of the tumor microenvironment. With multi-contrast PAM, we longitudinally determined tumor vascular anatomy, blood flow, oxygen saturation of hemoglobin, and oxygen extraction fraction

AKT1 Loss Correlates with Episomal HPV16 in Vulval Intraepithelial Neoplasia

Anogenital malignancy has a significant association with high-risk mucosal alpha-human papillomaviruses (alpha-PV), particularly HPV 16 and 18 whereas extragenital SCC has been linked to the presence of cutaneous beta and gamma–HPV types. Vulval skin may be colonised by both mucosal and cutaneous (beta-, mu-, nu- and gamma-) PV types, but there are few systematic studies investigating their presence and their relative contributions to vulval malignancy. Dysregulation of AKT, a serine/threonine kinase, plays a significant role in several cancers. Mucosal HPV types can increase AKT phosphorylation and activity whereas cutaneous HPV types down-regulate AKT1 expression, probably to weaken the cornified envelope to promote viral release. We assessed the presence of mucosal and cutaneous HPV in vulval malignancy and its relationship to AKT1 expression in order to establish the corresponding HPV and AKT1 profile of normal vulval skin, vulval intraepithelial neoplasia (VIN) and vulval squamous cell carcinoma (vSCC). We show that HPV16 is the principle HPV type present in VIN, there were few detectable beta types present and AKT1 loss was not associated with the presence of these cutaneous HPV. We show that HPV16 early gene expression reduced AKT1 expression in transgenic mouse epidermis. AKT1 loss in our VIN cohort correlated with presence of high copy number, episomal HPV16. Maintained AKT1 expression correlated with low copy number, an increased frequency of integration and increased HPV16E7 expression, a finding we replicated in another untyped cohort of vSCC. Since expression of E7 reflects tumour progression, these findings suggest that AKT1 loss associated with episomal HPV16 may have positive prognostic implications in vulval malignancy

A New Targeting - A New Take-Up? Non-Take-Up of Social Assistance in Germany after Social Policy Reforms

We present first estimates of rates of non-take-up for social assistance in Germany after the implementation of major social policy reforms in 2005. The analysis is based on a microsimulation model, which includes a detailed description of the German social assistance programme. Our findings suggest a moderate decrease in non-take-up compared to estimates before the reform. In order to identify the determinants of claiming social assistance, we estimate a model of take-up behaviour which considers potential endogeneity of the benefit level. The estimations reveal that the degree of needs, measured as the social assistance benefit level a household is eligible for, and the expected duration of eligibility are the key determinants of the take-up decision, while costs of claiming seem to play a minor role.Diese Studie liefert erste Schätzungen für Quoten der Nicht-Inanspruchnahme für Leistungen der Grundsicherung nach SGB II und SGB XII. Die Analyse basiert auf einem Mikrosimulationsmodell, welches eine detaillierte Abbildung der deutschen Sozialgesetzgebung erlaubt. Unsere Ergebnisse deuten darauf hin, dass sich die Nicht-Inanspruchnahme im Vergleich zur Situation vor der Hartz-IV-Reform verringert hat. Um die Determinanten der Inanspruchnahme zu bestimmen, schätzen wir ein Modell des Inanspruchnahmeverhaltens. Die Schätzungen zeigen, dass die Höhe des Anspruchs sowie die erwartete Bezugsdauer die entscheidenden Einflussfaktoren darstellen, während die Kosten der Inanspruchnahme eine untergeordnete Rolle spielen

Eosinophilic pneumonia associated with daptomycin: a case report and a review of the literature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Although several studies did not demonstrate that daptomycin may cause significantly higher rates of pulmonary adverse effects when compared with vancomycin or penicillinase-resistant penicillins, there have been a few case reports of severe pulmonary complications associated with daptomycin administration.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A rare case of eosinophilic pneumonia occurring 10 days after daptomycin administration in a 78-year-old Caucasian man with possible infectious endocarditis is described. He developed new onset fever, up to 38.5°C, with bilateral pulmonary crackles on physical examination and with no signs of severe respiratory failure. A chest computed tomography-scan showed bilateral nodular consolidations with air bronchograms and pleural effusions. Immediate discontinuation of daptomycin was followed by vigorous improvement of clinical signs and symptoms with progressive resolution of pulmonary consolidations a month later.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Physicians should be aware of this rare but serious complication during daptomycin treatment, and prompt discontinuation of the offending agent, with or without additional supportive treatment, must occur immediately.</p